Google Chrome Underwhelms

Techtree News Staff, Sep 04, 2008 1124 hrs IST

We take Google's web browser for a spin -- it's nothing special. For now

Chrome is out and available for download, we took it for a quick spin. If you are looking for a low-down on the features that Chrome introduces, our previous article will serve as a good introduction. Our impressions of Chrome follow.

What we like

Each tab runs as a different process. Open Windows Task Manager and you will see multiple instances of Chrome, each representing a tab. Incidentally, Chrome offers a task manager of its own: right-click its address bar area to access it; a far easier way than to hunt down Chrome processes under Windows Task Manager. This behaviour makes it easy to track errant websites and memory sinks, and to close them down without affecting the browser on the whole. We also like the "New Tab" experience: Chrome lists frequently visited sites and recent bookmarks while a new tab is opened. It's Opera's Speed Dial remixed but as a value-add, it's a good feature.

Chrome's Task Manager allows you to shut down an errant tab, without bringing the entire browser down

Google Chrome's 'New Tab' behaviour: Chrome on top, Opera's Speed Dial below, highlighted in red

Incognito Mode. A one-click option to go invisible while browsing sites, nice. Under Incognito Mode, Chrome does not store any information on the sites you are browsing. Safari offers this as well, not surprising since both these browsers use the same guts (Webkit).

An incognito window will not leave cookies on your PC. Nor will sites browsed while incognito appear in your history

It's fast. Really fast -- in our totally-unscientific testing, it felt faster than even Opera! (Chrome loaded Techtree.com in about 5 seconds, Opera took about 6 seconds and Firefox took about 8 seconds.)

Very clean Interface. Chrome's interface is impressive: clean, intuitive, minimal yet useful. It also feels snappy, especially with the tabs. Unfortunately, Chrome does not allow you to change tab listing from a horizontal to a more readable vertical layout. (We love opening tabs, and the horizontal layout gets very cramped, very fast). The interface is equally clean across the browser's features: history, downloads, find-in-page, even the stats page carries the clean lines and fonts.

It's compliant. Google Chrome passed the Acid2 test fine. It failed the Acid3 Link Test though (a 77/100 score), which is strange since Webkit was one of the two (the other being Opera) that had passed the Acid3 test. But javascript support is excellent, from what little browsing we did on AJAX-intensive websites. (For those wondering -- Safari gets 75/100 on Acid3, Opera 83/100, Firefox 70/100, IE8 12/100.)

An integrated download manager. Every browser should come with a download manager. Chrome's is tied to the tab that you trigger the download under. So while the download will continue even if you close the tab, you won't be able to track it on the browser's footer. (Hit [Ctrl] + [J] to open the Downloads window -- downloads here are searchable.)

History view. The browser shows History by day and you can delete a particular day's history with just a click. History is also clickable. Nothing special -- Opera offers the same and more, for example, but Chrome's interface is much cleaner.

What we don't like

It's not what we expected. When Google introduces a new product, we expect something revolutionary. Chrome is evolutionary at best; nothing special. Yes, it is a very early Beta but as it stands, it doesn't excite us beyond its speed (did we mention it is very fast?). When we first heard about Chrome, we expected a browser that will revolve around tasks; Chrome is still too URL-centric; it is not "something starting from scratch", as the Chrome comic put it. Chrome is still very much in
the 'old browser' domain. As of now, Flock is more of a design "based on the needs of today's web applications and today's users", than is Chrome, to quote from the comic once again.

In its current state, Chrome fails to live up to the promises of this comic strip:

Some interface niggles. Bad tab management. Yes, it opens related tabs next to each other, but we like how IE8 Beta colour-coordinates sibling tabs. We also miss browsing through tabs using our mouse-wheel, like Opera allows. Absence of mouse-gestures also make us sad. Overall -- this is not a power-user's browser. (Although it does throw some nice stats at you when you type in about:memory in its address bar). It's zoom feature also leaves much to be desired -- everybody, just copy Opera's zoom implementation please.

Missing features. No adblock software, no feature to store and track web-content as snippets, surprisingly little (read: none) integration with Google Apps beyond taking them offline with a click, lacking in integration with even Google services such as YouTube and Picasa. Chrome is open-source, so we expect a lot of value-addition in the form of plugins but as of now, the browser feels bare.

Memory hog. It is quite the memory guzzler. With 14 tabs open, Chrome's memory footprint was the biggest, with IE8 Beta being the lightest. Note that throwing Opera in this comparison isn't very apples-to-apples, since there were 17 tabs open under Opera, while the rest had the same 14 open. (This article was written under Opera;
plus an additional window, hence the extra tabs).

Mmmm, memory. Chrome likes.

Our thoughts on Chrome

Google Chrome is a typical Google product -- fast and simple. Unfortunately, unlike most Google products, it lacks the "wow": there is no pressing need, no must-have feature that begs you to adopt it immediately. Which is disappointing, considering Google's track record with new applications. It is fast though.

Chrome is clearly a shot across Microsoft's brow, and for the most part, it connects. Google has obviously released this software as a means to ensuring that all their web applications run, and run well on at least one browser. Chrome also lets you create shortcuts to Google Apps; and to take Google Apps offline, via its Gears framework (although that works with other browsers as well). We imagine this behaviour will be better integrated with time. Chrome is thus a play against Microsoft's dominance of the online field (through IE), and offline field (through MS Office).

While this move is welcome (competition is always good), we can't help but feel a little left out; as an end-user. We wish Chrome truly had rebooted the browsing experience, much like Google brought new interface paradigms to the webmail experience, or indeed to data via its search service.

We were expecting a revolution, and Chrome isn't it. At that, we are disappointed. As a browser, it is a competent offering but it's lost in the web of browsers; and barely stands apart. Hopefully, Google has greater plans for Chrome -- beyond merely using it as a lynchpin in its strategy agains Microsoft.

USER COMMENTS

This browser hangs for many sites very bad browser

by ravi, Bengaluru, on Sep 22, 2008 01:49 PM, Report abuse Reply

Yes, i am agree with this analysis. I am quite happy with this browser compare with at least IE8. One thing, i would like to add is Chrome also lacks integration of external download accelerator like Internet download manager or Free download manager. I don't know i may be wrong in this info. This may be reverse i.e. popular download accelerator still don't have support for Chrome browser. If i am wrong, can any one suggest how to integrate free download manager 2.5 with chrome?

by Abhishek, Pune, on Sep 12, 2008 09:37 PM, Report abuse Reply

please give me a chrome software

by Ramchandra, Mumbai, on Sep 12, 2008 10:48 AM, Report abuse Reply

You can do the same thing in firefox as well, i.e., stealth browsing/incognito mode and that too WITHOUT any kind of extension/plugin/addon etc. It is already built in in firefox. See this: http://tech.shantanugoel.com/2008/09/10/firefox-incognito-mode-is-here-move-over-chromeie8.html

by Shantanu Goel, Chandigarh, on Sep 11, 2008 12:36 AM, Report abuse Reply

I actually found Chrome to be very good. It has dynamic tabs which makes it easier for browsing. I found that the shortcut employed in firefox are here as well. So a smooth transition for me. Would love to see more features from google though.

by Vikram Pathak, Gwalior, on Sep 06, 2008 03:41 PM, Report abuse Reply

and by the way.. i know that it is really bright on the looks side. I believe the front end could be made more attractive by applying many skins or themes. Though i do like the design and the speed of the Chrome. The best feature is the option of turning off pesky flash thingies from its own task manager. So that cuts some of the system hogger tag of its!.

by Vikram Pathak, Gwalior, on Sep 06, 2008 03:49 PM, Report abuse

I tried printing to adobe acrobat writer from the browser and it prints garbage. Take care if you want to print an e-ticket from the travel portals or airline portals. When opening the HDFC Bank website, at first you cannot see the tabs within the account, but after scrolling, they can be seen. Overall, its OK but fast....

by Srinivas Hebbar, Mumbai, on Sep 05, 2008 10:18 AM, Report abuse Reply

Somebody needs to learn what adding BETA to the end of a program means. Read a review when the real thing comes out. Beta is for programmers and those willing to find and iron out bugs.

by who, new zealand, on Sep 04, 2008 10:54 AM, Report abuse Reply

No sir, Beta is not necessarily for programmers. It is for users willing to test things out at their own risk and report bugs, not necessarily iron them out. The alpha level is for programmers.

by Kaushik, Delhi, on Sep 04, 2008 08:59 PM, Report abuse

Trying this browser since yesterday. Am very disappointed. Even Gmail and social networking sites are opening very slow or getting stuck. Very few features / controls are available. Also, there appears to be a problem with operating buttons. Nothing happens when buttons are clicked. Firefox beats it any day. I have loaded firefox with lots of add-ons and always have at least 10-15 tabs open, yet, it works fast and great. Chrome may beat it in future but at the moment, firefox rules. Strangely, my machine is also rather slow from today. ((And techtree, even with your new look, the CAPTCHA is still not working.))

by Kaushik, Delhi, on Sep 04, 2008 08:41 PM, Report abuse Reply

Though it is indeed a temptation to try out anything that google creates. I think beyond tinkering with it. At present i am going to stick with Firefox... :-)

by Anant Bhushan, Roorkee, on Sep 03, 2008 12:14 PM, Report abuse Reply

Its fast no doubt...but doesnt have java applet support and many simple things which at least a beta version should have....

by Hemant, chennai, on Sep 04, 2008 08:23 PM, Report abuse

safari is the best browser.....it just cant be compared to any other browser, if u do so then u r insulting the king

by akshay, manimajra, on Sep 03, 2008 07:32 PM, Report abuse Reply

Safari on Windows is crap. Opera and Firefox for teh win.

by Alok, Noida, on Sep 04, 2008 10:18 AM, Report abuse

eat shit.....safari is the fastest , text styling is awesome...firefox is the worst.......chrome is second to safari and chrome is definitely better than IE, opera, firefox safari>chrome>IE>opera>firefox

by akshay, manimajra, on Sep 04, 2008 05:16 PM, Report abuse

Hey hell, lookout the latest test results.... firefox the best... Take the user's count for safari..???? I think u r the only person using that scrap...

by Rex, Mumbai, on Sep 04, 2008 06:41 PM, Report abuse

In the about memory screenshot, i could see Opera is listed as Opera 9.60 (wich is not yet released). So is it a bug in Chrome (displayin the wrong version) or u guys have Opera 9.60, or is it a Photoshop work, jus to create buzz about Opera 9.60

by Jitender, Chennai, on Sep 04, 2008 09:20 AM, Report abuse Reply

It's a beta version of Opera. Ekdum cutting-edge :P

by ttnews, mumbai, on Sep 04, 2008 05:01 PM, Report abuse

i m opera fan since 3 years, now it comes without ads. its far better than other browsers. tweak opera a bit and its the fastest browser, for opera 9.51 go to tools>preferences>advanced>network- and increase number of max connections to server and also increase number of total connections. then you will realize that opera is the fastest. well its good to see something new in browser section, especially from google. will definitely give it a try.

by naveenchaudhary, meerut, on Sep 04, 2008 12:35 PM, Report abuse Reply

I have not tried chrome as yet. But i am happy to know that Google has come out with its own. IE should receive a beating!

by Anonymous, mumbai, on Sep 04, 2008 11:39 AM, Report abuse Reply

Quite intelligently written article on chrome, providing unbiased feedback.

by Fr0z3n, Hyderabad, on Sep 04, 2008 02:39 AM, Report abuse Reply

It's faster. That's great. History is shown as thumbnail while opening new tab. That's the best use of free space of window.

by Altaf Patel, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, on Sep 04, 2008 12:13 AM, Report abuse Reply

I differ with the authors opinion. Looks like the author wanted rocket science and an aeroplane cockpit in the browser. I tested out Chrome quite a bit. You'd be amazed with its speed, its simplicity, it's robustness - and this is just the beginning. Leave apart a few minor glitches - which would be fixed with time. It's in Beta. It'd be revolutionary, from being evolutionary, with time. Let's appreciate an effort. Way to go, Google!

by Subhodeep Bhatt, Bangalore, on Sep 03, 2008 04:25 PM, Report abuse Reply

Agreed with all your points -- it's just that we expect better from Google. But like you said, Chrome will only improve with time. Hopefully :) But as it stands now, it's a little disappointing, since much more was expected. See Flock for some cool experiments that are being done with browsers, or even the Ubiquity project -- it's time for the browsing experience to evolve to the next level. Chrome doesn't offer that yet; although it promised much the same. Which is why it left us dissapointed

by ttnews, mumbai, on Sep 03, 2008 06:10 PM, Report abuse

I agree completly with Subhodeep, i dont understand why people are skeptical about chrome, come on guys, i think our expectations with google has gone just to high, after all it is just a web browser, not a supernatural thing, or some new invention, things will automatically come from existing matter, Its just that google has delivered it with great skills and perfection, its the google way, and truly deserves praise, the dynamic nature of tabs, such a good design, i have never seen any browser with such readable space to user, Good work google, keep the good work on, we have even higher expectations with next versions...

by Saurabh, Mysore, on Sep 03, 2008 10:41 PM, Report abuse

Chrome is probably just going to be another one of those applications from Google that will create some hype for a month or more and then fizzle out. What is strange is that most of the visual things that you see with Chrome are copies from other browsers like the thumbnails from opera, tabbed browsing from opera, incognito mode which seems to be a clone of IE's InPrivate mode. The browser as such lacks some of the most simple things like Java Applet support. Google as usual is trying to lay out a lot of techno jargon in the market to attract people but it will probably (and sadly) end up wooing Mozilla users rather than IE users. IE 8 on the other hand looks pretty awesome when you look at the concept of accelerators for instant blogging and emailing articles. IE really has hit the buzzer on what people need today which is easy and fast collaboration. In the end it looks like Chrome will go the same way as a lot of other Google Apps that are still sitting in the Lab. Let's at least hope that Google makes a release version of this unlike all its other BETAs.

by Venkat, Bangalore, on Sep 03, 2008 08:06 PM, Report abuse Reply

Mozilla Firefox still rules! But I must say a nice effort from Google. Beware Microsoft!!

by Arnov Sarkar, New Delhi, on Sep 03, 2008 06:58 PM, Report abuse Reply

It was November 30, 2005 when I downloaded the then newly released Firefox 1.5. Prior to that day, I thought that why use another browser, when surfing could be done with IE also. And within a week, I became the ambassador and biggest advocate of Firefox in my college. As of today, I am so used to the Firefox with its themes and extensions, that can't imagine net surfing without it. However, impressed by the comic book released by Google for its CHROME, I downloaded/installed last night at 1:00 AM and using it since then. No doubt, CHROME is fast and appearance, but absence of extensions/themes is the major impediment for its success. Since CHROME is also an open source, the problem will be vanished with time. However, I fear that CHROME will largely attract the users of Firefox/Opera and IE users will be unaffected largely. For the time being, I stands with Firefox.

by Vishi Sinha, New Delhi, on Sep 03, 2008 06:11 PM, Report abuse Reply

Me 2 believe tht IE users use 2 think the same way U used to b4 switching 2 Firefox.

by Gaurav, New Delhi, on Sep 03, 2008 06:41 PM, Report abuse

Chrome is a good browser but lacks most of the functionalities and got hell lot of bugs for now, anyways it's just the beta stage so cannot complain instead will wait for a stable release. One bug I faced was the horizontal scroll on touchpad will scroll down but won't scroll up, kinda funny bug, I went to their help site to report and saw that there were many fellers ahead of me informing the same issue. Talking of simplicity I think this will be a very good browser for normal everyday browsing with extra space and a good speed.

by Viru, New Delhi, on Sep 03, 2008 06:12 PM, Report abuse Reply

After having read the article earlier in the day and posted my comment below. I thought it best to try out the latest release myself. And to be frank i liked it. The increase in the screen space and the minimalist interface is a real boon. Is making my browsing simpler as i write this from chrome rather than firefox which has been my browser of choice. Though yes i did feel that there was the need for an Adblock option but even they are available as addons on firefox and i think its just a matter of time before they are standard on Chrome too. For the meantime i am going to be using firefox(mostly for stumbling). But i very soon see myself shifting loyalities... :-)

by Anant Bhushan, Roorkee, on Sep 03, 2008 05:21 PM, Report abuse Reply